Jimmy Tobias
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jamesctobias.bsky.social
Jimmy Tobias
@jamesctobias.bsky.social
1.1K followers 98 following 150 posts
Investigative reporter for The Nation, The Guardian, and more. FOIA fan. Co-founder, Public Domain: www.publicdomain.media Email: [email protected] Signal: jtoby.06
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Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
sammyroth.bsky.social
Epic @propublica.org / @highcountrynews.org series on the many ways Western ranchers run rampant over public lands, degrading ecosystems while the federal government helps them get away with it. Great work by @jamesctobias.bsky.social and company. www.propublica.org/series/free-...
Free Range Archives
The federal grazing system, propped up by subsidies and access to 375,000 square miles of the West, disproportionately benefits billionaires, mining companies and large corporate outfits. Dwindling ov...
www.propublica.org
December 5, 2025 at 7:07 PM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
ejtodaynews.bsky.social
BLM Lets Ranchers Renew Grazing Permits With Little #Environmental Scrutiny

Mark Olalde and Lucas Waldron report for @propublica.org and @jamesctobias.bsky.social reports for @highcountrynews.org with photos by Roberto “Bear” Guerra.

www.propublica.org/article/graz...
A Loophole Allows Ranchers to Renew Grazing Permits With Little Scrutiny of the Environmental Impact
With dwindling oversight, cattle are grazing where they’re not supposed to and in greater numbers or for longer periods than permitted. This can spread invasive plants, pushing out native species and ...
www.propublica.org
December 3, 2025 at 12:09 AM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
charlesornstein.bsky.social
Powerful Friends: Sympathetic Officials and “Cultural Power” Help Ranchers Dodge Oversight, by @jamesctobias.bsky.social and Mark Olalde w/ @highcountrynews.org
Powerful Friends: Sympathetic Officials and “Cultural Power” Help Ranchers Dodge Oversight
Elected officials are quick to support public lands ranchers who are accused of breaking rules. As a result, federal agencies pull punches when enforcing regulations.
www.propublica.org
December 3, 2025 at 1:04 PM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
cengizyar.com
A new investigation from @propublica.org & @highcountrynews.org finds that government programs for grazing on public lands help the wealthiest of ranchers while harming the environment. www.propublica.org/article/graz...
A rancher moves a herd of cattle between pastures in Colorado. Cattle owned by the ranching company BTAZ Nevada graze in sagebrush habitat on the Forest Service’s Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest in central Nevada. An aerial photo shows a massive open pit mine with haze rising from the center.
December 2, 2025 at 3:56 PM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
jael.bsky.social
independent journalist jimmy tobias is suing the interior department in an effort to release information about DOGE employees, which he says the agency has not been providing despite repeated FOIA requests
Public Domain sues Trump's Interior Department
Our first FOIA lawsuit seeks the calendar entries of top DOGE operatives and other political appointees.
www.publicdomain.media
September 25, 2025 at 4:32 PM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
vampira.bsky.social
Thanks, @jamesctobias.bsky.social!
The Weekly Wrap — November 7, 2025
A rotten week for The White House
www.publicdomain.media
November 7, 2025 at 3:38 PM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
sammyroth.bsky.social
Trump's new nominee to lead the U.S. Bureau of Land Management is a former oilman who once called for divesting federal lands: www.publicdomain.media/p/trump-blm-... via @jamesctobias.bsky.social
He Once Pushed to Divest Federal Lands. Now He's Trump's BLM Nominee.
Most federal land "we do not even need," wrote former Congressman Steve Pearce in a 2012 letter.
www.publicdomain.media
November 13, 2025 at 5:07 PM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
ejtodaynews.bsky.social
Inside #Utah’s PR Campaign to Seize Public Lands

@jamesctobias.bsky.social reports for Public Domain, published with @highcountrynews.org

#news #environment #climatechange

EJ Today Headlines: sej.org/headlines/list

www.publicdomain.media/p/utah-publi...
Inside Utah’s PR Campaign to Seize Public Lands
Utah used actors, AI, stagecraft and NDAs as it sought to sway public opinion and take control of 18.5 million acres of federal public land
www.publicdomain.media
June 19, 2025 at 12:06 AM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
ejtodaynews.bsky.social
Big Bill Hands Public Land Near Minnesota Wilderness To Foreign Mining Company

@jamesctobias.bsky.social reports for Public Domain

#news #environment #climatechange

EJ Today Headlines: sej.org/headlines/list

www.publicdomain.media/p/boundary-w...
Budget Bill Hands Public Land Near Iconic Minnesota Wilderness To Foreign Mining Company
The reconciliation bill overrides federal laws and regulations to benefit one Chilean company — Antofagasta PLC — that wants to mine near the Boundary Waters wilderness area.
www.publicdomain.media
June 9, 2025 at 11:51 AM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
chrisdangelo.bsky.social
make no mistake, the House budget bill still very much includes a public land giveaway

great piece from @jamesctobias.bsky.social today on the provision to hand ~6,000 acres of federal land near Minnesota's iconic Boundary Waters over to a Chilean mining giant
www.publicdomain.media/p/boundary-w...
Budget Bill Hands Public Land Near Iconic Minnesota Wilderness To Foreign Mining Company
The reconciliation bill overrides federal laws and regulations to benefit one Chilean company — Antofagasta PLC — that wants to mine near the Boundary Waters wilderness area.
www.publicdomain.media
June 5, 2025 at 5:18 PM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
ejtodaynews.bsky.social
More Lobbyists Turn Up At Trump’s Interior Department

@jamesctobias.bsky.social reports for Public Domain

#news #environment #climatechange

EJ Today Headlines: sej.org/headlines/list

www.publicdomain.media/p/more-lobby...
More Lobbyists Turn Up At Trump’s Interior Department
They join a stable of industry insiders at DOI, including DOGE operative Tyler Hassen, who made millions in the energy sector before joining the agency
www.publicdomain.media
June 4, 2025 at 3:38 PM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
vampira.bsky.social
From @jamesctobias.bsky.social:
More Lobbyists Turn Up At Trump’s Interior Department
They join a stable of industry insiders at DOI, including DOGE operative Tyler Hassen, who made millions in the energy sector before joining the agency
www.publicdomain.media
May 29, 2025 at 3:27 PM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
ejtodaynews.bsky.social
Pro-Trump 2020 “Stop the Count” Activist Lands High-Level Job at Interior
#news #environment

@jamesctobias.bsky.social and ‪‪@chrisdangelo.bsky.social‬
report for Public Domain

www.publicdomain.media/p/trump-inte...
Pro-Trump 2020 “Stop the Count” Activist Lands High-Level Job at Interior Department
Interior Department appointee Daniel Gustafson is a long-time Trump loyalist who participated in a protest to “stop the count” of Michigan ballots in 2020.
www.publicdomain.media
May 28, 2025 at 11:58 AM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
ejtodaynews.bsky.social
Trump Admin Moves to 'Neuter' America's Most Important Wildlife Law
#news #environment

@jamesctobias.bsky.social reports for Public Domain

www.publicdomain.media/p/trump-neut...
Trump Administration Moves to 'Neuter' America's Most Important Wildlife Law
Congressional Republicans also plan to turn the Endangered Species Act into a dead letter.
www.publicdomain.media
May 16, 2025 at 6:59 PM
jamesctobias.bsky.social
The article says that the Washington Post was the first to report on Matt Luby's role at DOI, but Public Domain broke that story first too: www.publicdomain.media/p/vivek-rama...
May 15, 2025 at 11:02 PM
jamesctobias.bsky.social
[email protected] confirms the names of more than 20 Interior Department political appointees -- many of them were first reported by Public Domain in March. www.eenews.net/articles/int...
Interior releases Burgum staff list
Records released under the Freedom of Information Act offer a comprehensive look into the secretary’s inner circle.
www.eenews.net
May 15, 2025 at 11:00 PM
jamesctobias.bsky.social
Trump Administration Moves to 'Neuter' America's Most Important Wildlife Law
www.publicdomain.media/p/trump-neut...
Trump Administration Moves to 'Neuter' America's Most Important Wildlife Law
Congressional Republicans also plan to turn the Endangered Species Act into a dead letter.
www.publicdomain.media
May 15, 2025 at 3:51 PM
jamesctobias.bsky.social
Public Domain gets a shout out in The New York Times for breaking the story on the Interior Department’s leaked draft strategic plan. Not bad for a publication that's only a few months old: www.nytimes.com/2025/05/13/s...
Interior Department Weighs Less Conservation, More Extraction
www.nytimes.com
May 13, 2025 at 10:46 PM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
chrisdangelo.bsky.social
The total value of Congressman Westerman's energy and mineral holdings was between $14,000 and $210,000.
www.publicdomain.media/p/bruce-west...
House Natural Resources Chair’s Oil Stock Purchases Were Unusual For Committee
Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) bought stock in a dozen mining, oil and gas giants two months before ramming an industry-friendly budget bill through his committee.
www.publicdomain.media
May 12, 2025 at 7:37 PM
jamesctobias.bsky.social
In a new legal filing, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility asserts that Tyler Hassen — DOGE’s man at the Interior Department — violated the Whistleblower Protection Act and abused his authority. peer.org/new-interior...
New Interior Department Czar Abuses Authority
Whistleblower Retaliation and Cybersecurity Violations Among First Acts
peer.org
May 5, 2025 at 10:52 PM
jamesctobias.bsky.social
RECORDS: Trump's Interior Secretary Has Close Ties To The De-Extinction Company He Promotes
www.publicdomain.media/p/interior-d...
RECORDS: Trump's Interior Secretary Has Close Ties To The De-Extinction Company He Promotes
As North Dakota governor, Doug Burgum wooed Colossal Biosciences to his state. As Interior Secretary, he publicly champions the biotech company.
www.publicdomain.media
May 5, 2025 at 4:23 PM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
jamesctobias.bsky.social
We obtained records that detail Interior Secretary Doug Burgum's close ties to Colossal Biosciences, the company that claims to have revived the extinct dire wolf: www.publicdomain.media/p/interior-d...
RECORDS: Trump's Interior Secretary Has Close Ties To The De-Extinction Company He Promotes
As North Dakota governor, Doug Burgum wooed Colossal Biosciences to his state. As Interior Secretary, he publicly champions the biotech company.
www.publicdomain.media
May 3, 2025 at 7:07 PM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
adamwelz.bsky.social
Pay attention conservationists
May 3, 2025 at 7:50 PM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
aweiss.bsky.social
Colossal is “in active discussion regarding a variety of business operations in the state, all of which are sensitive and confidential both to Colossal and the state of ND's economic development efforts.”

Killer work by Jimmy, Chris, and Roque here.
May 3, 2025 at 11:20 PM
Reposted by Jimmy Tobias
bengoldfarb.bsky.social
We’re two weeks away from an EO mandating the construction of Jurassic Park.
May 3, 2025 at 8:18 PM